Dover-Sherborn High wraps up spring season with success

Of the six traditional team sports, four qualified for the state tournament, including boys lacrosse advancing to the state title and girls tennis earning a No. 1 overall seed.

By Mike McMahon, Dover-sherborn@wickedlocal.com

Spring has become a dominant season for Dover-Sherborn over the years, and the 2014 season didn’t disappoint. Of the six traditional team sports, four qualified for the state tournament, including boys lacrosse advancing to the state title and girls tennis earning a No. 1 overall seed.

The season was unquestionably highlighted by boys lacrosse, which has owned the spring year after year.

The Raiders once again appeared in the state title game, bidding for a third straight title, but was upended by Cohasset in the championship despite a feverish second-half comeback.

“The guys have worked hard all season,” head coach Brian McLaughlin said. “Back in March we were talking a lot about how guys were going to have to step up. When we had guys get hurt early in the season, we really needed a lot of guys to step up. Thankfully, a lot of guys did.”

The girls team was guided by first-year head coach Katelyn Barry, who led the team to the tournament.

The Raiders beat Medway in the first round and nearly clipped No. 2 Walpole in the second round, falling 12-9. Devin Laidman was a standout all season and registered four goals in the Medway game. Fellow seniors Hannah Crowley and Mallory Stewart were consistent contributors on offense and Kate Masterson was a leader on defense.

The Raiders were one of the deadliest offenses in the Tri-Valley League, potting double-digit goals in most games, including explosions of 20 (Bellingham), 17 (Medway) and 19 (Ashland).

Barry took over the team after spending three years on the coaching staff as an assistant under Erin Newton.

“It’s exciting for me with this group,” she said. “These seniors, I started at Dover with them when they were freshmen, so we started all together at the same time.”

Jon Kirby was another new coach on the D-S staff this spring, taking over the boys tennis team and keeping up with the tradition by also qualifying for states. Kirby watched as Jim Baroody built the D-S program into one of the premiere teams in all of Division 3, and despite a roster filled with mostly new players, the Raiders kept the tradition of winning alive.

D-S graduated eight seniors off last year’s team.

“I’m not sure what my expectations were, to be honest. It was basically a new team, with so many guys (eight) graduating last season. I wasn’t sure what to expect.

“[Baroody] had built a great program here at D-S, and I’m just hoping to keep that momentum going. His son, Dylan, is one of our top doubles players, so he’s still around.”

The Raiders’ doubles teams were stellar all season, led by Baroody and Priyan Thurairatnam at first doubles and Jake Budd and Scott Hackney at second doubles. The singles competitors included seniors Alex Adamczyk and Emilio Ftypoulos, who also served as co-captains.

Karen Raymond’s girls tennis teams, like its counterparts on the boys side, have developed into one of the top programs in the state over the last five seasons.

The Raiders finished 14-2 in the regular season and entered the tournament ranked as the No. 1 seed in the Division 3 south tournament. D-S fell in the semifinals to Ursuline Academy.

“This is one of the closest groups I’ve ever coached,” Raymond said. “I can’t describe it. It’s also great to see them get along off the court, but these girls are so much fun. They all get along and they have such a great attitude. Their passion and the way they interact with each other is incredible. It’s made this year so enjoyable.”

The good news is that D-S returns its entire roster, including juniors Olivia Barbier and Alex Blizzard, who both played singles, as well as the doubles team of Meredith Allen (freshman) and Mary Kate Forte (sophomore).

There was not a single senior on the team.

In outdoor track, the girls finished 15th in the state and the boys finished 11th in the state.

Michelle Alessandro finished third in the 400. On the boys side, Dan Carroll won the discus event Division 4 meet and finished fourth in the All-State meet, which encompassed all divisions.

On the diamonds, baseball and softball were both in rebuilding seasons. Baseball carried more freshmen than in any season under head coach Steve Ryan, he said.

“It’s a very talented class,” Ryan said. “There is a lot of talent. This is the most freshmen I’ve had on the roster in the 21 years I’ve been coaching. They’re all very good athletes, which you need to be to make an impact this early.”

Softball was similar, with many sophomores and juniors on the team.

Things won’t slow down for most athletes this summer. Some will compete in Bay State games while summer leagues and camps are now the norm for almost every sport.